-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A Saudi Arabian blogger detained in December , ostensibly because he supported reform advocates accused by the Saudi government of backing terrorism , has been released , a fellow blogger posted Saturday .

Web sites like this one pushed for Fouad al-Farhan 's release .

Ahmed al-Omran said on his blog , saudijeans.org , and later told CNN that he was awakened by a text message from the wife of Fouad al-Farhan , saying he had been released and was at home with his family .

`` That 's great news , and this is just how I wanted to start my morning , '' al-Omran wrote .

He said he later spoke with al-Farhan for several minutes on the telephone .

`` He sounded fine ; he seems to be in good spirits , '' al-Omran said . `` He said he would have more to talk about later but not at this point . He said now he 'd like to take some time to spend with his family , with his children that he has n't seen for so long . '' Watch al-Omran describe his conversation with al-Farhan ''

A Web site set up to call for al-Farhan 's release said , `` Fouad is free . He is back home in Jeddah after 137 days in custody . ''

The Saudi Interior Ministry said it had no immediate comment on the reports .

In January , a ministry spokesman said al-Farhan was arrested December 10 `` because he violated the regulations of the kingdom . ''

But in an e-mail posted on al-Farhan 's Web site after his arrest , he told friends that he faced arrest for supporting 10 reform advocates the Saudi government accused of backing terrorism . In the e-mail , al-Farhan said a senior Interior Ministry official promised that he would remain in custody for three days at most if he agreed to sign a letter of apology .

`` I 'm not sure if I 'm ready to do that , '' he wrote . `` An apology for what ? Apologizing because I said the government is -LSB- a -RSB- liar when they accused those guys of supporting terrorism ? ''

Al-Farhan , who blogs at alfarhan.org , is one of the few Saudi Web commentators to use his own name , according to the U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists .

In January , the Bush administration expressed its concerns to the Saudi government regarding al-Farhan 's detention at `` a relatively senior level , '' U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said .

`` The U.S. stands for freedom of expression , '' McCormack said at the time . `` Wherever people are seeking to express themselves , via the Internet or via other areas , whether in Saudi Arabia or elsewhere in the world , we stand with that freedom of expression , and that was our message to the Saudi government . ''

The American Islamic Congress , a U.S.-based nonprofit organization , launched an online letter-writing campaign aimed at freeing al-Farhan , whom it called `` the godfather of Saudi blogging . ''

`` All he did was express his opinions in a very obvious way , and he did n't threaten anyone , '' al-Omran said . `` He was advocating against violence and terrorism . ''

Al-Omran said al-Farhan had stopped blogging for a few months in late 2006 , after the Interior Ministry ordered him to take down a blog he was operating , but he began again at a new site .

He said al-Farhan told him he was treated well in jail . He also called al-Farhan 's release a turning point for the blogging community in Saudi Arabia .

`` It showed the community of bloggers in Saudi Arabia can come together and support this cause -- support his freedom of speech -- even those who did n't agree with some of the things he wrote , '' he said . E-mail to a friend

CNN 's Mohammed Jamjoom contributed to this report .

@highlight

NEW : Friend says blogger `` in good spirits '' and spending time with family

@highlight

Fouad al-Farhan detained in December by Saudi government for his blog

@highlight

Al-Farhan was held because he supported reform advocates , a blog says

@highlight

Saudi government accused him of supporting terrorism through his blog